Some top former Scientology executives tell us that one of the reasons church leader David Miscavige seems unable to pull the organization out of its nosedive is that he has sorely missed the counsel of Jerry Feffer. The Washington DC lawyer was instrumental in lobbying the powerful on behalf of the church, which helped Scientology get so much help from US politicians in the 1990s. His wife, Monique Yingling, is also a top church lawyer, but she has been less visible in recent years during her husband’s illness.

Feffer died on February 13, and a couple of paid obituaries appeared at the New York Times and Washington Post a few days later. A memorial was held on February 18. But no news stories seem to have remarked on Feffer’s passing. A former federal prosecutor, Feffer was later an attorney with Williams & Connolly, an influential DC firm. Miscavige called Feffer for many different tasks. Some of them could be strange.

As we reported in December, for example, it was Feffer who Miscavige relied on to talk to Pat Broeker about his departure from Scientology in the late 1980s. (Miscavige had recently pushed Broeker out of his chance to take the helm of the church.) Miscavige had Broeker under surveillance at the time, and two private eyes were (legally) recording the phone calls he made on a cordless phone. In those conversations, they heard Feffer wrangling with Broeker over whether he could take with him L. Ron Hubbard’s pet parrot and a beat up old pickup truck.

But Feffer also was a tax expert who helped Scientology with its battle with the IRS, culminating in tax-exempt status for the church in 1993.

We asked Mike Rinder for a note about Feffer; Rinder ran Scientology’s Office of Special Affairs and helped oversee the church’s legal affairs until his defection in 2007. He sent us this…

I am saddened by his death and I was sorry when I heard he had Parkinson’s. On a personal level he was a nice guy.

I am sure he has been replaced by someone else the church is paying to be an influence broker. From that perspective, these people are relatively expendable — as long as you have money you can buy influence. I suspect the effect may be greater on Monique — hopefully it will get her to realize there are things more important in life than taking money from Miscavige to do his dirty work for him. After the IRS CID investigation was ended, Gerry was not involved in the day to day activities of Miscavige. Monique has been. If anyone warrants the title of Miscavige consigliere, it’s Monique Yingling.

Some top former Scientology executives tell us that one of the reasons church leader David Miscavige seems unable to pull the organization out of its nosedive is that he has sorely missed the counsel of Jerry Feffer. The Washington DC lawyer was instrumental in lobbying the powerful on behalf of the church, which helped Scientology get so much help from US politicians in the 1990s. His wife, Monique Yingling, is also a top church lawyer, but she has been less visible in recent years during her husband’s illness.

Feffer died on February 13, and a couple of paid obituaries appeared at the New York Times and Washington Post a few days later. A memorial was held on February 18. But no news stories seem to have remarked on Feffer’s passing. A former federal prosecutor, Feffer was later an attorney with Williams & Connolly, an influential DC firm. Miscavige called Feffer for many different tasks. Some of them could be strange.

As we reported in December, for example, it was Feffer who Miscavige relied on to talk to Pat Broeker about his departure from Scientology in the late 1980s. (Miscavige had recently pushed Broeker out of his chance to take the helm of the church.) Miscavige had Broeker under surveillance at the time, and two private eyes were (legally) recording the phone calls he made on a cordless phone. In those conversations, they heard Feffer wrangling with Broeker over whether he could take with him L. Ron Hubbard’s pet parrot and a beat up old pickup truck.

But Feffer also was a tax expert who helped Scientology with its battle with the IRS, culminating in tax-exempt status for the church in 1993.

We asked Mike Rinder for a note about Feffer; Rinder ran Scientology’s Office of Special Affairs and helped oversee the church’s legal affairs until his defection in 2007. He sent us this…

I am saddened by his death and I was sorry when I heard he had Parkinson’s. On a personal level he was a nice guy.

I am sure he has been replaced by someone else the church is paying to be an influence broker. From that perspective, these people are relatively expendable — as long as you have money you can buy influence. I suspect the effect may be greater on Monique — hopefully it will get her to realize there are things more important in life than taking money from Miscavige to do his dirty work for him. After the IRS CID investigation was ended, Gerry was not involved in the day to day activities of Miscavige. Monique has been. If anyone warrants the title of Miscavige consigliere, it’s Monique Yingling.

How does one quantify the life actions of the individual? That I do not know. I only know what this man did within the legal realm for the church of Scientology. Was he an ethical man? Was he just doing a job? Those questions are hard to both answer and come to terms with.

From my perspective both Mr. Feffer and his wife may not have been able to reach deep into their humanity and separate true justice from the need to gain personal wealth,fame and credibility.

Both took the church of Scientology,s money. History will show the decades long harm done by their collective actions. Both paved the way for actions that have done and continue to do harm towards humanity.

I am a volunteer advocate for victims of the Narconon scam. I am a former scientologist. I post anonymously. Mary McConnell is my long time nom de plume. Feel free to contact me for assistance in righting the wrongs.